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Henry Miller
Henry Miller was a controversial American writer, known for his atypical, autobiographical fiction. Connections As a teenager, Miller was an avid humanist and interested in human rights. His "idol" was Hubert Harrison, who he used to listen to speaking at street lectures in Midtown Manhattan. Miller met his second wife, June Miller, when she still a dancer in 1923. At the time, he was married to his first wife. June was 21 years old, beautiful, and mysterious. The two began an affair, and Miller divorced his wife within the year. They married in June of 1924. June's continued association with old admirers, however, irked Miller, and he was extremely upset when June and a close friend of hers went on a trip to France in 1927, seemingly in a lesbian relationship. June returned three months later. In 1928, June and Miller traveled to Paris together, but Miller's enjoyment of the city was overshadowed by the knowledge that the trip had been paid for by a wealthy older man, one of June's admirers. Their relationship deteriorated after that, and they seperated in 1930, when Miller moved to Paris alone. June soon had a change of heart, however, and joined him in Paris around 1931. She then came between the relationship of Miller and Anais Nin, Miller's lover, when Nin became fascinated with June. Miller suspected them of being in a lesbian relationship. June officially divorced Miller in 1934. They did not see each other again until 1961, when Miller invited her to have a friendly reunion. He was shocked at her "terrible" appearance and mental deterioration. Miller had a bohemian, passionate love affair with Anais Nin from about 1931 - 1934. They were both married to other people. Nin helped Miller's 1934 book Tropic of Cancer get published. While living in an apartment paid for by Anais Nin in the 1930's, one of Miller's neighbors was Salvador Dali. Miller met Lawrence Durrell in Paris in 1931, and the two became lifelong friends. His visit to Durrell's home in Greece in 1939 is written about in The Colossus of Maroussi, which Miller considered to be his best work. Miller attended therapy sessions from Otto Rank, who also helped finance Tropic of Cancer. George Orwell was a friend of Miller's, and was one of the first to refer to him a major modern writer, in a 1940 essay. In 1936, Miller attempted to discourage Orwell from enlisting in the Spanish Civil War. Around the 1970's, Miller met the 30-something writer Erica Jong, whom he helped mentor and sponsored financially. Miller met and worked with Warren Beatty around 1979, when he played a minor role in Beatty's film Reds. The film would later be released in 1981, a year after Miller's death. Model Twinka Thiebaud lived in Miller's home for many years toward the end of his life. The two possibly had an affair, but mainly it is known that Thiebaud cooked and helped care for the aging Miller. She also wrote extensively about his many dinner guests, evening chats, and daily life, which was eventually published, at Miller's encouragement, as the book Reflections in 1981, a year after Miller's death. Miller wrote and recieved thousands of letters to and from Playboy model Brenda Venus during the last 4 years of his life. The two were also close friends and, in all likelihood, lovers. He referred to her as his muse, and she referred to him as her mentor. Places New York, New York, USA - Born here, 1891. Grew up here. Lived here, 1891 - 1930. Paris, France - Lived here, 1930 - 1939. Corfu, Greece - Lived here, 1939 - 1940. Los Angeles, California, USA - Lived here, 1942 - 1944, and 1963 - 1980. Died, 1980. Big Sur, California, USA - Lived here, 1944 - 1963. Cannes, France - Visited here, 1960 and 1961. Notes - Read Miller's The Air Conditioned Nightmare, about his roadtrip through the United States, for more locations that he visited. Category:People Category:Historical Figures Category:Writers Category:1891 Births Category:1980 Deaths Category:People From the United States Category:Henry